I lost my Blog List

I know this sounds crazy but I had all of my favorite blogs saved in my bookmarks on my computer. This morning I woke up and after checking my email went to go blog-stalking and they were gone. Of course my first reaction was "ANTHONY WHAT DID YOU DO TO THE COMPUTER?" he said he didn't do it. Next it was "PATRICK WHAT DID YOU DO TO THE COMPUTER?" He said he didn't do it. I don't know what happened so I've spent the last hour trying to find some of the obscure blogs that I look at on a regular basis. I think my blogroll is going to get bigger.
Those who don't blogstalk might laugh, but you guys know what I'm talking about. :o)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas. We had a good day of doing nothing. The kids got plenty of new toys to play with. I'll share some pictures.
Ananya loves to ride her horse in the living room.

Ananya is playing with her new barbie. She likes to "wipe" her face and brush her hair.
With much prodding, she opened her presents.
Anthony dug right in of course and loved all his cool gifts.We took a spin at the new table and chairs Grandma bought with her new Aquadoodle.

New Taste Thursdays, Good Deals, and A Day At The Farm

New Recipe.
This is a simple one and not even really a recipe.
1 box spice or pumpkin cake mix
1 tub cheesecake filling
1 bottle caramel sundae topping
Take spice cake or pumpkin cake mix and make cupcakes without liners. Once cooled, cut in half and spread with a big glob of cheesecake filling. Top each cupcake with caramel topping.
They are very pretty and fairly simple to make.
I don't have any pictures, but here are pictures of the homemade yeast rolls I made last week. They turned out great, and I'm going to make more.

Good Deals
I got the above at CVS for 7 dollars. I had 7 coupons. I got 5.49 in extra care bucks which is like a gift certificate for my next trip. The shampoo and conditioner would have cost more than that out of pocket. My new obsessions are CVS and Walgreens trying to get as much stuff for free (or as close to it as possible). Visit Money Saving Mom for details.
Next up is our day at the farm.
We visited my friend, Karen, in Shelby yesterday. She was having a party and invited us early to help set up. Anthony got to help feed the animals. Ananya got to ride a donkey. Heck, how often do you get to see 3 ducks, about 40 chickens, 4 goats, 2 sheep, 2 horses, a golden retriever, and a Great Perinese with 6 puppies. It was a great day and we finally got back home after 11 last night. I was a great trip and we can't wait to go back.
Hope every one is having a great holiday. Merry Christmas.

New Taste Thursdays

***Editted--Anybody notice that I wrote this post yesterday (Wednesday). I've been way too busy. LOL***
I'm going to start something new here. I think I'll post a new recipe to share with you guys on Thurdays. Everyone can always use a new recipe.

Todays Recipe is Cheesy Broccoli Soup
1 T butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large bunch broccoli
1 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
6 cups chicken stock
1 1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

Melt butter in a 4-6 quart soup pot. saute onion until soft. Cut broccoli into flowerets and thinly slice tender upper parts of stems. Add to pot along with potatoes and chicken stock. Cover and simmer until potatoes and broccoli are tender.

Puree mixture in batches in blender (or use and immersion blender if you didn't give it away when you were getting rid of all your junk). Return to pot and stir in milk, parmesan and salt and pepper. Heat gently for a few minutes.

This recipe courtesy of Leanne at Savingdinner.com

This is a great soup for cold nights and Anthony and Ananya both love it.
Enjoy!!

What a Difference a Years Makes

As I decorate for Christmas and shop for presents and think about my holiday baking, I can't help but to think about this time last year. I can't believe its been a whole year, but boy am I glad that journey is over.
I'm so glad that Ananya is celebrating Christmas with us. I hurt last year and now its gone. This year we are waiting for our handsome Indian Prince. He'll be missed but I don't think its time for him to come home. God will take care of it. In the meantime, I have Ananya and Anthony and even Patrick keeping me quite busy. I love it. I have so much to be thankful for. What a difference the last year has made in my life.
I want to speak about some people I'm thankful have come into my life.
All the people at Dillon are wonderful. Tami and Jynger have been so much help and made sure we got new pictures and updates. Adrienne and Agni were a God-send when it came time to travel. I could never have arranged a better trip.
I can't forget all the new friends I've made. Kristi, I'm so glad I could moan and cry to you while we waited. Grace and Anila, we were so glad to meet you in India. Pam, I'm so glad I've meet you and can wait to randomly drive to Kentucky just because (its only a 5 hour trip). All the other India moms, thanks for sharing your trips. To all my SN forum friends, I am so glad to have you guys. You know how I feel and often times speak it before I can. I love all of you.
The other day, it dawned on me who is missing on this list. The Ayahs that took care of my daughter for 2 years and continue to care for my son. I could never thank them enough. I know they all loved Ananya. I wasn't the only one crying on Gotcha Day. They lead us through the orphanage and showed us all the babies. It was a great day that I finally got to see my daughter's home. I love each and every one of these women. I don't know what would be of my children without them. Caring for so many children only to send them to families can not be an easy job. I hope they know that each child that leaves is coming to a loving home and thrives. I want to take them a special gift when I return to India. I want to put together a scrapbook with as many childrens pictures as possible so the Ayahs can see what "their" babies have grown into. I pray God blesses each of these women daily for the work that they do.
I'm thankful to care for my family every day, even on the ones when I feel like they have run me ragged. God gives me strength. And I love them so much.
What are you thankful for?

Our Home and Holidays

(She isn't standing. She has her braces on and is propped/wedged up)


This is who we celebrated Thanksgiving with, my family.

New Pics and A Step Closer

We received new pictures of Prasun on Monday. It was a great start to my week. He is so handsome. I couldn't stop smiling. He was apparently flirting with Kristy. He was standing in his crib which is wonderful news. I'm extra happy about that.
We also had our homestudy visit yesterday. We are only doing one because we just finished our post placement things. I am praying I can get the remaining paperwork together quickly and have our dossier ready by the first of the year.
Ananya is doing great. She is her normal stubborn, funny self every day. She reacts to seeing Prasun's picture now. She laughs and tries to grap the picture. She tries to kiss the computer. It is too cute.
Anthony is doing great as well. He's ok with having a new brother. He is happy as well to not have to go to India again.
I'll try to post more pictures of the kids tomorrow.